1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to woodturning and, in particular, to a hand-held tool for use in the shaping of a timber workpiece into an article on a woodturning lathe.
2. Brief Description of Prior Art
Woodturning is a form of woodworking that is used to create wooden objects (e.g. a bowl or a table leg) on a lathe using cutting tools. Woodturning differs from most other forms of woodworking in that the wood is moving while a relatively stationary tool is used to cut and shape the wood. Many intricate shapes and designs can be made by turning wood or woodturning.
A large range of woodturning tools are available for shaping wooden objects as described. Such cutting tools include chisels and gouges as well as scraping tools such as scrapers, and are variously shaped to permit rapid rough cutting and scraping followed by more careful fine surface finishing in order to form a smooth hollow-ware article quickly.
Despite the advances in technology for manufacturing wood products, hand turned products are more highly valued and sought after than mass-produced products. This creates a high demand for hand turned products. Also, woodturning products by hand is a hobby enjoyed by many. Accordingly, there is a need for tools for creating hand turned products.
Traditional woodturning tools are hardened round steel shanks with a handle that rests against a tool rest on a lathe. A piece of wood is attached to the lathe and when the wood is spun around by the lathe, the user slowly applies the sharpened steel tool to the wood so that the wood is cut down with each pass. Each user must learn to angle the tool precisely so that a cutting edge is properly presented to the wood to allow the cut to be safely made. Generating cutting forces on traditional turning tools, with positive cutting angled edges, causes the tool to roll in the users hands and be drawn into the work piece. These forces traditionally have been countered by the grip force of the user or some secondary equipment. Also, as the tool is presented at a positive cutting angle to the wood, traditional tools want to be drawn into the piece of wood gouging it, dislodging it from the lathe and/or destroying the wood piece.
As will be seen from the subsequent description, the preferred embodiments of the present invention overcome disadvantages of the prior art. In this regard, the present invention discloses a woodturning tool designed:                specifically for easy access to the most challenging hollow form shapes;        all pressures generated by the wood cutting are transferred into the tool rest portion of the tool with no rolling dangers as found on traditional round bar tools;        the tool performs at a neutral cutting angle resulting in no dangerous forces causing the tool to get drawn into the wood or being rotated in the users grip.        